WI John II Comnenus launches a campaign against Crusader States in 1143?

In early 1143 Emperor John II Comnenus planned a new expedition to the East, including a pilgrimage to Jerusalem on which he planned to take his army with him. King Fulk d' Anjou, fearing an invasion, begged the emperor to only bring an army of 10,000 men with him.[7] This resulted in John II deciding not to go. However, on Mount Taurus in Cilicia, on April 8, 1143, he was accidentally infected by a poisoned arrow while out hunting. The poison set in, and shortly afterwards he died.
WI John II ignored Fulk invaded Kingdom of Jerusalem and lives a decade more than OTL? How is that changing History? Any thoughts?
 
Supposing Byzantium does emerge victorious in such a war against the Crusader States in 1143, what then? The Holy Land is occupied by an army that is hated by the West (for being Heretics) and the East (for being Infidels). So you get an earlier Fourth Crusade type incident, as Crusaders would very probably attack Imperial lands and Constantinople herself on their way to regain Jerusalem. John's Turkish enemies would sieze their chance and move in on coastal Anatolia recently reoccupied by the Emperor, and quite possibly win them back.

A bit of a bleak scenario, but as far as I can see it, by extending his borders to Palestine John is overextending resources he simply does not have. If on the other hand he first continues the reconquest of Asia Minor before turning his attention to the Crusader States then the outcome of a war COULD be different, as the Emperor has more resources and manpower to devote to such a campaign. Even so, I think that if John survived he would continue to use the typical Roman techniques for dealing with his enemies, simply playing the barbarian Franks off against each other, and ensuring that no one state becomes too powerful.
 
Or John II being an able diplomat strucks a quick deal with muslims against Western Crusaders... So with his rear secured the Imperial troops easily take over Holy Lands...
 
If this kind of army is going to be marched into Jerusalem, I doubt that this would be an actual military campaign. It will probably be more of a tour d'force. When the First Crusaders passed through Constantinople they swore allegiance to the Byzantine Emperor, an oath they quickly walked away from. If John II is going to march an army into Jerusalem, then I think that he might resurrect those oaths, and force the Latin East to swear fealty to him. This might be a bit much, and would probably cause more problems than it would solve. Additionally, John II knows that he cannot maintain control over the Latin East if the Latin lords oppose him.

John II's main objective was to force Antioch into the Empire. Antioch was a natural extension of John's conquest of the Anatolian coast, and would provide a base from which to wage war against the Iconium Sultanate. Unfortunately for the Byzantines Antioch was not so keen on the idea of becoming a part of the Byzantine Empire. There was a plan in 1138 for a joint Byzantine-Antioch campaign to conquer Aleppo. The idea was that once Aleppo had fallen, it would be awarded to Prince Raymond, who would give up Antioch to the Byzantines. The plan failed due to Raymond's opposition to giving up Antioch. If John II comes into the Latin East with a whole army, he might be able to get the Latin East to attack Aleppo, and then force the exchange with Raymond. In this situation John II would be betting that the Latin East would be willing to sacrifice Antioch if it meant keeping the Byzantine Army out of Jerusalem.
 
Couldnt John II used good old Roman diplomacy and provoke war between Antioch and Emirate of Aleppo... Raymond would have had his ass kicked and John would have entered the war as a protector of Antioch and beats the Arabs... Then he could force the exchange of Antioch with Aleppo and make it looks like as Raymond's idea...
 
Couldn't John II used good old Roman diplomacy and provoke war between Antioch and Emirate of Aleppo..

Raymond wanted to take Aleppo. When the Second Crusade occured King Louis and Queen Eleanor (Duchess of Aquitaine) both arrived in Antioch, where Raymond tried (and failed) to get them to aid in an attack on Aleppo. So its not that Raymond didn't want to attack Aleppo, its that he was unwilling to give up Antioch for Aleppo.

At the same time, Raymond knew that Aleppo (at the time ruled by Nur al-Din, the second son of Zingi, and the man who iOTL united Syria against the Latins) was more than a match for him. If Raymond believed that he could keep his city and participate in a successful Byzantine campaign against Aleppo, then I believe that he would. But as it was he was unwilling to aid in taking Aleppo if it meant losing Antioch.

Raymond would have had his ass kicked and John would have entered the war as a protector of Antioch and beats the Arabs... Then he could force the exchange of Antioch with Aleppo and make it looks like as Raymond's idea...

Raymond was an intelligent, calculating guy. These Byzantines are not the diplomatic masters of centuries past, playing barbarian tribes off one another. The Byzantine Emperors were barely more prestigious than the Kings of the Latin West.
 
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